Places Rainer Heer Wants to Go

Hidden in a high mountain cave, this hermitage dates back to the ninth century.

A 17th-century doorway in a small Sabine village is a portal into the mysteries of alchemy.

A single column facing the sea is all that's left of one of the most important temples of Magna Graecia.

Was this cave created by Hercules's wrath, the devil, or volcanic activity?

This unusually shaped fortress houses a blend of centuries-old frescoes and modern art.

This small but lovely sinkhole lake is the last remnant of a great prehistoric water basin.

A long-buried ancient ruin unearthed right in the middle of the city.

Italian director Pier Paolo Pasolini fell in love with this lonely 13th-century tower while making his most famous film.

Ever loyal to Roma, the small village of Albe in the Abruzzo region carried on until an earthquake did it in.

A small Byzantine church lost in the middle of the mountains of southern Italy.

The second-highest village in Lazio has attracted artists for 400 years and is now a spectacular open-air art gallery.

A lonesome Moai stands in a small Italian town some 9,000 miles away from its Easter Island brethren.

Natural cathedral designed by Italian artist Giuliano Mauri.

Caligula's colossal pleasure ships, discovered by Mussolini only to be lost in flames.

Suffocating dogs was a common spectacle in the fumes of this noxious cave.

Constructed during the 1960s, this bridge is still the highest in Italy.

Italy's third-largest Roman arena gives a peek into the underground operations beneath the ancient spectacles.

A medieval stronghold rising over the ruins of ancient Roman villas along Rome's southern coast.

A medieval Italian village is fighting depopulation with this vibrant annual street art festival.

The Bourbon royal family had this unique octagonal hunting "cottage" built on a tiny islet in Lake Fusaro.

This serene, turquoise lake in an extraordinary nature reserve showcases a rare natural phenomenon.

A semi-abandoned village destroyed by U.S. bombings during World War II dominates the valley of Turano.

This ultra-modern burial building would have stacked the dead like a giant filing cabinet.

The sunlight passing through the opening of this huge cave system creates a magical effect.